The Challenge 40 Battle of the Eras Player Preview: Derek Chavez
While The Challenge has had multiple legendary gay male competitors, ranging from Frank Sweeney to Shane Landrum to Tyler Duckworth — there is also not so great history with the way gay men often get targetted early on Challenge seasons due to perceived ideas of strength. I tracked it many years ago, and ever since eliminations got introduced to The Challenge, a gay man has gone into the first male elimination in 12 out of 24 seasons where a gay man has been on the cast. A 50% rate is insane, considering most casts typically don’t have more than 1–3 gay men on the cast, and there have been many seasons in recent years weirdly that don’t have any.
Derek Chavez is a player who, in my opinion, was unfairly targeted in a couple of seasons due to a perception of strength. Except if you actually watch Derek Chavez compete, you see a guy who is a great athlete and who gives 110% to the show.
As a personal aside, I interviewed Derek many years ago, and I was taken aback by his passion for the show. So many people come on this show and don’t put too much thought into the competition aspect once they leave. When I interviewed Derek, he remembered every single daily challenge he’d ever competed in; he knew the wacky names of them and had insights into how he was feeling during each one. The interview gave me so much respect because he has a love and passion for this show, just like the fans do, and that’s the type of person that I can root for.
Derek’s Cheat Sheet (TLDR Version)
Introducing Derek:
Originally an All-State High School Track & Field Athlete and his high school valedictorian, Derek Chavez went to college in Arizona. While living in Arizona, he began working at a bar, the same one Jonna Mannion worked at, and the two both ended up getting cast on the Real World Cancun. Derek was mostly just a nice guy during his Real World season.
He made his Challenge debut on Cutthroat. It was a cup of coffee run for Derek — his team lost the first daily challenge, threw him into elimination as a Rookie, and he lost to Brandon Nelson in Handcuffs (a Pole Wrestle variation). Derek wouldn’t return again till Battle of the Seasons, where he got to compete alongside his Cancun roommates CJ, Jonna, and Jasmine. Together, they became a formidable team, won multiple daily challenges, formed an alliance with Team San Diego, and for a second, Cancun looked like the front-runner to win.
On this season, Derek showed to be an extremely competent daily challenge competitor and displayed a ton of heart. When I think of Derek, a daily challenge that always comes to my mind is the mini-final from Battle of the Seasons. Zach & Frank were famously berating and pushing Sam up a mountain/hill in this challenge. Jasmine was struggling and gassing out for Cancun, so Derek, who is not the biggest guy ever, decided to put her on his back. It was a badass moment and a reflection of the type of teammate and competitor Derek is. Unfortunately, Cancun’s season sputtered out after they got pitted into a Hall Brawl elimination against San Diego, where CJ & Jasmine lost in sudden death to Zach & Sam. Derek & Jonna came in last in the final daily challenge and lost to a strong Frank & Ashley duo in Knot So Fast, barely missing out on the Final.
We would see Derek again on Rivals 2 — they paired him with St. Thomas Robb after a drunken argument from BOTS that included Robb ripping his shirt off. There wasn’t much bad blood between the two; they were actually an under-the-radar, hilarious pair. Seriously, go back, watch Rivals 2, and listen closely to their dual confessionals; they have a cute banter. Sadly, they got targeted immediately due to their lack of social connections. They got thrown into the first elimination, where they swept Tyrie & Dunbar in a Hall Brawl, but then lost to Knight & Preston in Episode 3 in the Blind Stick Fighting elimination. Now, I love the Blind Stick Fight elimination because it’s so dumb and fun to watch. However, it sucked seeing a much better team lose in a true crapshoot. It was unfortunate to see Derek & Robb lose so early because if you watched the daily challenges, they performed well as a pair. Had they beat Knight & Preston, as they should have, I wouldn’t have been shocked if they had been able to pull off another elimination win or two.
Rivals 2 was also notable because Derek had a hookup/showmance with former Texas Tech football player and bisexual Challenger Marlon Williams. It’s rumored that they got contacted to be a pair for Exes 2.
We wouldn’t see Derek again on the show for 8 years until All-Stars 2. It was again a short run for Derek; he got thrown in early due to perceived weakness and lack of connections. Derek’s appearance on the show was a miracle in itself, as he was dealing with a recent family tragedy. His head was not in the game, but still, he tried his best and gave Nehemiah a run for his money in their elimination. Considering Nehemiah almost won the season, Derek’s performance looks fantastic in retrospect, especially under the circumstances.
All-Stars 4 was finally Derek’s time to shine. The male cast was not the strongest, allowing Derek time and space to compete and show off his abilities. On All-Stars 4, Derek won four daily challenges, including the final challenge to earn his Star and qualify for his first Final. Unfortunately, Derek’s Final experience was short-lived, as he immediately lost the opening purge. What was significant about All-Stars 4 was that people finally got to see Derek’s abilities fully. In the daily challenges, his speed and cardio jumped out to everyone. Along with his footspeed, Derek’s heart and passion for competition were evident — even when it might’ve been better for him to throw the daily challenge so that he could go into elimination to earn a Star, he’d still give 110% in the daily challenge. The Challenge needs people like Derek who will put their all into the show.
Player Vitals & Stats:
Derek: 36 Years Old, 5'11 (Guesstimation), 5 Seasons*, 1x Finalist*, 1–4 Elimination Record, * = Includes All-Stars
Skills and Physical Strength:
Derek is a triathlon-type athlete. He’s a great runner in terms of both speed and endurance, a strong swimmer in the water, and I’m sure he knows how to ride a bike. In terms of a traditional Final, Derek has the skills to compete at a high level. Additionally, Derek has good core strength, a solid sense of balance, and strong mobility. Derek also has an adventurous side, as he enjoys competing in more extreme daily challenges.
The weaknesses in Derek’s game are raw power, size-based games, and physicality. Derek is very beatable in headbanger-type challenges. It’s funny because being good at a Hall Brawl or Pole Wrestle is not a good indicator of the skills it takes to win, yet it does affect perceptions of strength by players in the house.
SSMP (Social, Strategic, Mental, and Political) Game:
In the past, Derek has always come onto this show outgunned socially & politically. On All-Stars 4, Derek made a ton of important bonds and connections that should help him get through the early part of this game. Derek enters the game with his Ride or Dies in Ryan and Jonna. He formed a strong connection with Laurel on All-Stars 4 and an off-the-show friendship with Olivia Kaiser — each of those can do wonders in different ways. Laurel will likely hold power with comp wins, and Olivia will open up Derek to newer generation players to align with.
The mental game might be a weakness for Derek. He’s an intelligent, well-spoken, and thoughtful guy, yet I’ve never seen him crush a puzzle or a memory comp. Although his overall daily challenge sample size is not extensive.
When it comes to the strategic game, I don’t know what Derek brings to the table. He’s often had to play with the mindset of just trying to survive. The thought of him actively trying to get certain people out before the Final has never really come up.
Eliminations & Winning Potential:
If Derek gets a headbanger or a size-based elimination against most of this cast, he might as well start focusing on what he’ll be drinking on his plane ride home. In any other type of elimination, I don’t hate Derek’s chances on the basis that he’s got guts and will always leave it all on the field. That said, Derek is 1–4 in eliminations, so statistically speaking, expectations for him in the elimination aren’t great.
Can Derek win? Derek’s gotten knocked out in the 1st or 2nd male elimination in three out of his five seasons, and he barely made his first final ever (he didn’t even really get to run). What I’m saying is to expect him to make the Final against such a stacked cast and then potentially beat out multiple former Champions in what would be his first real Final… is unrealistic.
Now, I do think Derek has the cardio to crush a Final, but we don’t have any clue how he’ll do when it comes to eating gross food, and if his puzzle skills aren’t brushed up, his cardio won’t matter. Based on everything we know, Derek’s chances of winning this season have to be non-existent. Regardless, I’d like to see Derek continue to thrive and make as much of a run as he can this season.
